Villa of the Mysteries, Pompeii

Text and Images by James W. Jackson

Background

In the first century the Roman Empire contains many cities, but
none in a more beautiful setting than the cities and towns lining the Bay of
Naples. On the 24th of August, 79 A.D., volcanic ash spews from Mt. Vesuvius.
Pompeii and nearby Herculaneum disappear from the face of the earth. Gradually
grass and vines cover the land where the towns stood. The local people
eventually forget even the name of the buried towns.

Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1738 and Pompeii in 1748. By the
mid-eighteenth century, when scholars made the journey to Naples and reported on
the findings, the imagination of Europe was ignited. Suddenly, the classical
world was in vogue. Philosophy, art, architecture, literature, and even fashion
drew upon the discoveries of Pompeii and Herculaneum for inspiration; the
Neoclassical movement was under way.

Introduction

Villa of The Mysteries

This villa, built around a central peristyle court and surrounded by
terraces, is much like other large villas of Pompeii. However, it contains one
very unusual feature; a room decorated with beautiful and strange scenes. This
room, known to us as "The Initiation Chamber," measures 15 by 25
feet and is located in the front right portion of the villa.

The term "mysteries" refers to secret initiation rites of the Classical
world. The Greek word for "rite" means "to grow up". Initiation rites, then,
were originally ceremonies to help individuals achieve adulthood. The rites are
not celebrations for having passed certain milestones, such as our high school
graduation, but promote psychological advancement through the stages of life.
Often a drama was enacted in which the initiates performed a role. The drama may
include a simulated death and rebirth; i.e., the dying of the old self
and the birth of the new self. Occasionally the initiate was guided through the
ritual by a priest or priestess and at the end of the ceremony the initiate was
welcomed into the group.

The chamber is entered through an opening located between
the first and last scenes of the fresco.

The fresco images you will see in the Villa of Mysteries seem to part of a
ritual ceremony aimed at preparing privileged, protected girls for the
psychological transition to life as married women. The frescoes in the Villa of
Mysteries provide us the opportunity to glimpse something important about the
rites of passage for the women of Pompeii. But as there are few written
records about mystery religions and initiation rites, any iconographic
interpretation is bound to be flawed. In the end we are left with the wonderful
frescoes and the mystery. Nevertheless, an interpretation is offered, see if you
agree or disagree.

Interpreting the Frescoes

At the center of the frescoes are the figures of Dionysus, the one certain
identification agreed upon by scholars, and his mother Semele (other
interpretations have the figure as Ariadne).

As he had been for Greek women, Dionysus was the most popular god for Roman women. He was the source of both their sensual and their spiritual hopes.

Scene 1.

The action of the rite begins (below) with the initiate or bride crossing the
threshold as the preparations for the rites to begin. Her wrist is cocked
against her hip. Is she removing her scarf? Is she listening to the boy read
from the scroll? Is she pregnant?

The nudity of the boy may signify that he is divine. Is he reading rules of
the rite? He wears actor's boots, perhaps indicating the dramatic aspect of the
rites. The officiating priestess (behind the boy) holds another scroll in her
left hand and a stylus in her right hand. Is she prepared to add the initiate's
name to a list of successful initiates?

Entry and first wall (above). Magnification of scene one
(right).

(above and to the right) The initiate, now more lightly clad, carries an
offering tray of sacramental cake. She wears a myrtle wreath. In her right hand
she holds a laurel sprig.

Scene 2.

A priestess (center), wearing a head covering and a wreath of myrtle removes
a covering from a ceremonial basket held by a female attendant.
Speculations about the contents of the basket include: more laurel, a snake, or
flower petals. A second female attendant wearing a wreath, pours purifying water
into a basin in which the priestess is about to dip a sprig of laurel.

(Above right) Mythological characters and music are introduced into the
narrative. An aging Silenus plays a ten-string lyre resting on a column.

Scene 3

A young male satyr plays pan pipes, while a nymph suckles
a goat. The initiate is being made aware of her close connection with
nature. This move from human to nature represents a shift away from the
conscious human world to our preconscious animal state. In many rituals,
this regression, assisted by music, is requisite to achieving a
psychological state necessary for rebirth and regeneration.

The startled initiate has a glimpse of what awaits her in
the inner sanctuary where the katabasis will take place. This
is her last chance to save herself by running away. Perhaps some initiates
did just that. The next scene provides hints about what both frightens and
awaits the initiate.

Scene 4.

The Silenus looks disapprovingly at the startled initiate
as he holds up an empty silver bowl. A young satyr gazes into the bowl, as
if mesmerized. Another young satyr holds a theatrical mask (resembling the
Silenus) aloft and looks off to his left. Some speculate that the mask
rather than the satyr's face is reflected in the silver bowl. So, looking
into the vessel is an act of divination: the young satyr sees himself in
the future, a dead satyr. The young satyr and the young initiate are
coming to terms with their own deaths. In this case the death of childhood
and innocence. The bowl may have held Kykeon, the
intoxicating drink of participants in Orphic-Dionysian mysteries, intended
for the frightened initiate.

Scene 5

This scene is at the center of both the room and the ritual. Dionysus sprawls
in the arms of his mother Semele. Dionysus wears a wreath of ivy, his thyrsus
tied with a yellow ribbon lies across his body, and one sandal is off his foot.
Even though the fresco is badly damaged, we can see that Semele sits on a throne
with Dionysus leaning on her. Semele, the queen, the great mother is
supreme.

Scene 6.

The initiate, carrying a staff and wearing a cap, returns
from the night journey. What has happened is a mystery to us. But in
similar rituals the confused, and sometimes drugged initiate emerges like
an infant at birth, from a dark place to a lighted place. She reaches for
a covered object sitting in a winnowing basket, the liknon.
The covered object is taken by many to be a phallus, or a
herm.

To the right is a winged divinity, perhaps Aidos. Her raised hand is
rejecting or warding off something. She is looking to the left and is prepared to strike with a whip.

Standing behind the initiate are two figures of women, unfortunately
badly damaged. One woman (far left) holds a plate with what appear to be pine
needles above the initiate's head. The apprehensive second figure is drawing
back.

Scene 7.

The two themes of this scene are torture and transfiguration, the
evocative climax of the rite. Notice the complete abandonment to agony on
the face of the initiate and the lash across her back. She is consoled by
a woman identified as a nurse. To the right a nude women clashes
celebratory cymbals and another woman is about to give to the initiate a
thyrsus, symbolizing the successful completion of the rite.

Scene 8.

This scene represents an event after the completion of the ritual
drama. The transformed initiate or bride prepares, with the help of an
attendant, for marriage. A young Eros figure holds a mirror which reflects
the image of the bride. Both the bride and her reflected image stare out
inquiringly at us, the observers.

Scene 9.

The figure above has been identified as: the mother of the bride, the mistress of the villa, or the bride herself. Notice that she does wear a ring on her finger. If she is the same female who began the dramatic ritual as a headstrong girl, she has certainly matured psychologically.

Scene 10

Eros, a son of Chronos or Saturn, god of Love, is the final figure in
the narrative.